The Light After the Dark
by Fai7hl3ss
Summary: This is my first CT novel that I have written and completed, but I'll only be posting a new chapter if I get good reviews. This is a totally different version than what was written two years ago, but it shares the same plot. R/R
1. Prophecy In Progress

"Wow," commented Marle as she looked out her single window in her chamber. She slowly leaned against the windowsill and breathed the cool morning air. "The sky looks so beautiful." It was true as well. The whole sky seemed like a painter's dream; it was filled with several shades of orange, pink, purple, and light red that spilled over the horizon. The sun was only beginning to peer over the treetops bringing a new wave of red orange. This only emphasized on the scene's true beauty giving it a quiet peaceful and angelic look. Finally a warm breeze was swiftly making its way through the window giving a slight soothing and comforting feeling.  
  
'I wonder if Crono is awake yet,' she silently thought to herself as she turned away from the solitary opening to the outside. Wiping a single strand of hair away from her face, Marle closed her eyes and thought about the events that had taken place a few weeks ago. Crono and herself were walking through Nadia Square when suddenly Crono fell to the ground as he cried out in pain and clutched his chest. No one else was around, and she tried healing him, but nothing seemed to help him. His eyes were squeezed shut as he slowly curled up in ball. Eventually, no noise or sound of pain escaped him, as he lied motionless on the cobblestone ground. Luckily he wasn't dead, but he didn't wake up either. For two weeks he had been in this state with no explanation of how or why this had happened. Everyday Marle would go visit him hoping that one day he would wake, but so far that day had not come, and Crono had a fever that seemed to skyrocket over a matter of days. So far things didn't look to well.  
  
Marle sat down on her bed and placed her chin in her hand. It was only around six o'clock at this time, so there was really nothing to do but think. There was no real reason for her to be up this early, but recently she always got up just around the time the sun did. She slowly started to remember the dream she kept having that always made her wake the early. In the beginning, it was always so peaceful, and it was always what she wanted, but then near the end it started to get so frightening and so real that it would awaken her with sweat coming down her face and tears pouring out of her eyes.  
  
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A small wedding was held in Nadia Square where everyone in the Kingdom of Guardia attended. This day was special not only because of the weather, but because of the couple that was getting married. Nadia Bell began to ring merrily as the new King and Queen finally walked into the plain sight of the people. Everyone began to cheer widely as Marle and Crono now faced the people of their kingdom. She squeezed his arm lightly and blushed a bright crimson red as Crono gently smiled down at her.  
  
Marle thought he looked so handsome as well. Even though he looked very uncomfortable in the outfit that he had to wear, but he tried not to show it. He was wearing a simple lighter version of his normal tunic with a long white cape flowing behind him. He didn't know how Magus and Glenn could get used to those things, but he managed. That wasn't the thing that bothered him most though. The thing that bothered him was the headset that he had to wear for the whole ceremony. It was a small version of a normal regal crown with a wing on the side of his head. It wasn't nearly as nice as his normal headband, and the only way it stayed on his head was because of his mass of spiky red hair that sat atop his head. Marle always thought that the way he tried not to fiddle with his crown.  
  
Marle, on the other had, wore a simple white gown and a small headset over her hair. Her long strawberry blonde hair sparkled in the sun as everyone cheered and threw rice at them. Marle linked arms with Crono and slowly walked in the crowd of people. Lucca, Glenn, Magus, Robo, and Alya were all there to see them get married. Lucca forced Magus to come, so he seemed pretty neutral about the whole occasion. Alya was hugging Glenn tightly in his new human form as she still cheered widely for the newlyweds.  
  
"Congratulations!" shouted Lucca from the crowd. She ran up to the couple and hugged them both tightly. "You two finally tied the knot! So Crono, how does it feel to be king?" Crono shifted slightly and got a really worried look on his face. Marle and Lucca giggled slightly as Crono flashed a small nervous smile. "Well, I'll be on my way. Cya later!" stated Lucca as she blended back in with the crowd.  
  
When Marle and Crono finally got out of the mob of people, they calmly walked through Nadia Square. "Well, my love," Crono began, "what do you wish to do now?" He said that in the most soothing and comforting voice in the world. Marle blushed a bright crimson just at the mere sound of it. She looked up at him and smiled warmly.  
  
"Well, I thought maybe you and I could-" A loud rumble cut her sentence short. What was once Nadia Square was now the ruins in 2300AD. Epoch was close by and Lucca was no where to be found. The skies were all darkened over with large storm clouds that hovered above the sky like birds of prey. Every so often a flash of lightning would harshly strike the ground leaving a crater marking where it had hit.  
  
Marle was dressed in her normal white jump suit with her crossbow and arrows strapped to her back. She quickly looked around, and then her head shot upward when a bolt of lightning signaled an on coming down pour. Pelts of watered rained from the sky beating the ground mercilessly. She soon became frantic and looked all over for Crono, but he and no one else was found.  
  
She began to run through the sheets of rain searching for some sort of shelter. It wasn't long before she stumbled upon a lone figure squatting down in the thick rain. As she approached the figure, thunder violently shook the land. Falling to her knees, she looked up and saw that Crono was the one squatting down. Before she could call out his name, he was struck with a bolt of black lighting that seemed to not only hit the outer surface, but the surface within as well.  
  
She got up on one knee and screamed in shock when she saw what was lingering above her. It was indeed Crono, no mistake about that, but he seemed so empty, so cold. Instead of his normal tunic he wore, he was dressed in black armor with a silver sheath on his side. His hair, except for two spikes in the front, was all tied back. But these were not the major differences. His eyes were the things that caught most of her attention. Instead of their normal pale green, they were a sickening blood red that seemed to glow with each flash of lightning. His face also seemed colder and shallower than his normal happy go lucky smile.  
  
Crono reached down and grabbed Marle's neck. Holding her a foot off the ground, Crono glared at her and bared his teeth. She didn't even get time to struggle, for within seconds he tossed her to the side like and over used rag doll. She hit the ground hard on her right hand side and let out a sharp cry of pain. Marle rolled over, onto her back and held her side, which was now bleeding because of a jagged cut. Tears streamed out of her eyes, and she looked up to see Crono running at her with his black version of the Rainbow Sword. Blood dripped though her fingers as she prepared for him to make the killing blow, but it never came.  
  
A bright flash of white light filled her view….  
  
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"Princess Nadia!"  
  
Marle looked up startled as she heard someone call out her name. Small beads of sweat had formed on her forehead after remembering the horrifying night encounter. She wiped her forehead quickly and turned around to face the voice that had called to her. She had almost forgotten that she was still in her castle. After all the travels with Crono, she had gotten used to a life that wasn't as regal as she was accustomed to. Every now and then she would forget where she was when she got lost in thought. It wasn't a very rare occurrence, so everyone was slowly but surely getting used to her little daydreams.  
  
Marle let out a small sigh of relief when she saw that it was only her trusty handmaiden. She was fairly young woman, only about the age of 27 or so. She had deep brown eyes as well as long chestnut hair that she often wore in a long braid that hung down her back. She was a very petite woman, only being about 5 feet tall, but she was very smart and very wise for her age. She wore a very modest dress that matched the color of Marle's eyes perfectly.  
  
The maid was holding a tray of food that was supposed to be Marle's breakfast. She rested down on her bed and bowed slightly.  
  
"The King said that he was sorry that he couldn't attend breakfast with you, so he sent this tray instead," stated the woman very politely.  
  
"Thank you, Alma. Your service is well appreciated," declared Marle with a gracious small on her face. Marle was still lost in thought when she received the food, so she could only play around with it and eat small bites at a time. Alma stood by her waiting for Marle to finish, but seeing that this was getting no where, Alma reminded Marle of an important fact that she had forgotten.  
  
"Princess, you'd better hurry up and get ready," ushered Alma softly. "Mistress Lucca will be here very soon to escort you to see Master Crono." Alma bowed her head in respect. "How is the young lad doing now anyway?" Marle looked away sadly, and sighed to herself.  
  
"He still hasn't awoken yet, I'm afraid," she stated softly as she looked up at Alma. The maid simply nodded her head in understanding and briskly walked out of the room. Before she left, Marle called out her name.  
  
"Thank you, Alma," Marle said quickly. Alma smiled at the young princess and left the room silently. Marle continued to eat her food slowly, and she eventually got ready to go visit her fallen comrade. 


	2. Love's Lost Glory

Chapter 2: Love's Lost Glory  
  
  
  
'Enjoy your time with her time now, boy. Your soul and power will be mine, and your love will be mine as well. Embrace the darkness, Crono…'  
  
"NO!" Crono screamed as he shot up from his bed. His eyes darted left and right as cold sweat slowly dripped down his face. Breathing heavily, he flung the bed covers from atop of him, and he quickly jumped to his feet. All his senses where the keenest they could be at this point. Crono looked around frantically for his Rainbow sword, but it was no where to be found in the lonely room. His eyes still scanned the room carefully, searching for any invaders and trying to get a grasp of where he was at the current point of time. His heart was pounding rapidly in his chest when he clenched his fists tightly. The voice he just heard had awoken him and it scared him half to death.  
  
He finally let out a long breath after he realized that he was in his own bedroom. He let out a small gasp when his legs gave way, making him land on his butt on the bed and soon after bouncing a few times because of the spring coils. Sloping his shoulders, he wiped the sweat off his face and let out a small shiver. Even though it was late in the summer, it seemed to be freezing in his room. Soon he could hear footsteps dashing up the stairs as someone burst into his room with a shocked expression on her face.  
  
"Oh my God!" Zyla cried. She ran to the side of his bed and placed her hand on her son's head. "Are you OK? I couldn't help but rush up here when I heard you yell. I thought for sure that someone had attacked you."  
  
"No, it's OK, Mom; I'm fine. Why are you so worried about me? I was just sleeping," Crono commented as her facial expression softened a little bit.  
  
"Well, for one thing, you look as white as a ghost. Another thing would be that you've been asleep for two weeks straight. Luckily-"  
  
"WHAT!?" Crono exclaimed.  
  
"You were asleep for two weeks."  
  
"But how can that be? I remember walking in Nadia Square with Marle, and now I'm here two weeks later? What happened?"  
  
"One question at a time please! No one knows exactly what happened, but I think Marle would know best. She should be here soon, so you can ask her then. Also, you've had a high fever for all that time and no one could figure out what was wrong with you. I'm glad that you're awake now, but you still better get some rest because you aren't fully well yet." Crono lied on his back and pulled the covers back up to around his neck.  
  
"Thanks, Mom."  
  
"No problem. By the way, what made you jump like that?"  
  
"N…nothing… nothing at all," Crono stammered. Even though he lied, he could still see little flash backs of the nightmare that had plagued him all that time. He could even still hear the prolonged rolls of thunder rumbling in his ears. Once again his face turned into a pale white, and Zyla became worried.  
  
"Crono, you know that Marle has been very worried about you." Crono looked at her in surprise. "For the first week, all she did was sit here by your side. I can still remember her blaming herself for what happened to you even though everyone knows that it wasn't her fault. She seemed so depressed. She didn't even go home or fall asleep till Lucca finally convinced her to do so. She must really love you to do such a thing." Crono blushed a bright red as Zyla made that last comment. He had always hid the fact that he liked Marle a lot in fear that she wouldn't like him more than a close friend.  
  
Crono wanted to continue to play with the thought, but suddenly Marle and Lucca burst into the room. It was a most interesting sight, since neither one of the females stayed on their feet the whole time. Lucca tried to run in while Marle was already in an all out sprint. It wasn't long before Marle's foot got caught on Lucca's leg, which caused Marle to become close friends with the floor in an unreal fashion. Also to Lucca's disliking, Marle's leg made her become even closer friends with Marle since Lucca landed on top of her. As amusing as the sight might have seemed, the air was quickly knocked out of the princess, and Lucca's glass went astray from her face. Both Crono and Zyla were speechless about the whole scenario, although Zyla did stifle a laugh quite secretly. Marle, finally getting the air back in her lungs, tried to get up, but she found it quite hard when Lucca used her back as a stepping stool when she was looking for her glasses. Once again, Marle was flat on her stomach against the wooden floor.  
  
"God!" Lucca exclaimed, finally after sitting up on her knees when she was finished crawling over Marle's now sore back. "Mrs. Xenos, can you please get my glasses for me?" Lucca asked politely as Marle slowly sat upright. Zyla walked about 3 feet and picked up Lucca's glasses. Luckily they weren't broken, but they were bent up a bit. She handed them back and Marle let out a long sigh after brushing a few loose strands of hair out of her face. Crono looked down at them both and let out a silent chuckle. He always found it amusing whenever they made a special entrance into his room. He then picked up his pillow and lightly threw it at Lucca's head. Being a person with great aim, he naturally hit her, and it bounced off the hat she always wore, right into Marle's hands.  
  
"Fine entrance you both made," stated Crono still laughing to himself. Lucca adjusted her hate as Marle threw the pillow back at him.  
  
"Yes, we're just here to entertain you, Crono. Wait a second… You're awake!" cried Marle as she sprang to her feet encasing him in a tight bear hug knocking him onto his back on his bed.  
  
"It would seem that way," he responded quietly as he returned the gesture. One of his hands rested on her waist while the other one gently stroked her hair. She rested her head on his shoulder as he slowly rocked her in his arms. It wasn't hard for Crono to sense how uneasy she had been for the past two weeks. Marle seemed rundown and slightly upset about something that not even his state of being could possibly help with. She held onto him as if something was terribly wrong, yet he couldn't exactly tell what it was. He placed his cheek lightly on her head while he was still rocking her.  
  
He suddenly let go of her while she sat up. His pale green eyes seemed to have clouded over, as he was lost in thought. His dream and now Marle's new actions were all coming at him at once. It was almost too much to bear. The room became hotter and the air was harder to breathe. He needed to get out; out of this house, this room, it didn't matter, he just needed to leave the place for a while, no matter what anyone said.  
  
After standing up, Crono slowly stumbled his way over to the bedroom door. All three of the women stared at him in confusion when he suddenly stopped underneath the door frame. He looked over his shoulder and calmly declared what he was doing.  
  
"I'm going out for a while," he said.  
  
"You can't be serious. You just woke up today!" exclaimed his mother.  
  
"I'll be back soon."  
  
"Crono-" Lucca began.  
  
"This is crazy!" Marle butted in. She leapt up from the bed and ran over to him. "Tell me you're kidding."  
  
"Marle, I'll be back later."  
  
"You can barely walk. How are you going to get back?"  
  
"Don't worry, I'll be fine."  
  
"Be fine, sure." She folded her arms and looked away. "If you're going, then so am I. Someone has to look after you."  
  
"I have to think by myself. Please don't follow me."  
  
"I can't believe this. I'm still going-"  
  
"Don't."  
  
"But-"   
  
"No!" His sudden outburst hushed her quickly. There was a long pause that lingered in the room. It seemed to hang on everyone making them all incapable of talking or even making another sound. Finally Crono spoke. "As I said before, I'll be back soon." He slowly limped down the stairs and out of the house. It wasn't until the heard the front door click shut that Marle let out a breath of air.  
  
Marle wasn't used to having him command her like that. He normally never raised his voice or argued with her before, but then again neither one of them at that time seemed like themselves. She slumped to her knees and held onto her shoulder. A flashback of her nightmare passed through her mind, and she held back a sob. She had to speak to Crono, for this omen that she kept getting in her dream was too important to let pass by.  
  
Lucca was still standing near Crono's mom after watching the whole scene in amazement. Now all she did was slowly watch Marle's frail form as it shook violently as she held back a sob. She knew how much Marle cared about Crono, and she even knew about the freak dreams that Marle kept having. She once tried to make sense of it all, but nothing would add up properly. All Lucca could ever do was offer a bed for Marle to sleep in at her house. That way, Marle at least had a close friend nearby if she needed it.  
  
"Damn it!" Marle cursed as she banged her fist against the floor. Tears streamed down her face, and she bit her lower lip. "I don't care what he says!" Lucca tried to walk toward her, but before she even got a foot closer, Marle had already sprung to her feet and bolted out the door. The sound of the front door closing wasn't heard because Marle neglected to shut it. She just kept running right out of the house.  
  
"My God," whispered Zyla as she sat on Crono's bed. Lucca leaned against the wall and let out a heavy sigh. She knew something was going to happen soon, but she couldn't tell exactly what.  
  
"I would go after them, but this is something they need to settle out for themselves. They're the perfect match, and they need each other. The thing is, something is bothering them both that makes them fear for the other. The only thing we can do now is just sit back and wait for fate to take its course…"  
  
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Crono walked slowly through the thick brush aimlessly, not really caring where he would end up. Too much was clouding his mind at this point, and all he wanted was to walk, hoping that somehow it would help him to get away from it all.  
  
'Crono, help!!!!' cried out a voice that sounded like a very distant, and wounded Marle.  
  
"No… Not again," Crono whispered to himself.  
  
'Your soul shall be mine, puppet,' declared a sinister voice.  
  
Crono got to a cliff and fell to his knees. His chest ached in pain again, but his head was killing him most of all. He grabbed his head and let out a soft plea. "Stop it…"  
  
'Once your soul is mine, your love shall be mine as well.'  
  
"No… Marle…"  
  
'Don't try to fight it, boy! How could you possibly win with that worn down body of yours? Especially when I finally get to have her.' The voice laughed an ear splitting laugh that seemed to sting Crono's ears.  
  
"NO!" he cried out as a single tear slid past his eyelid. The pain in his chest and head subsided, but he still heard the voice faintly talking to him, making him have a series of shudders run down his spine. Crono felt so weak and helpless; it was the only thing that could truly tear him apart. He tried to suck up all the fear and anguish that had filled him, and he tried to get back up to his feet. He only got to one knee before he heard light footsteps quickly coming from behind him.  
  
The figure that was running toward him finally collapsed next to him and threw her arms around his neck. The female was trembling just as much as he, yet her sobs were more free flowing. She held onto him tightly as her silent tears soaked his shirt. All he could do was hold her as well. Even though it annoyed him that she followed him anyway, he couldn't cast her away, not now when he needed her the most.  
  
He entangled his fingers in her hair and held her tightly. Stroking her tears away softly, Crono tilted up her head to look at him. Her emerald eyes were filled with more sorrow and despair than he ever could have imagined. She bit her lower lip, preventing it from trembling. It was hard to look at her, so all he did was simply look away.  
  
"Crono?" she asked with a shaking voice. Even her tears had affected the way she talked. It was more pain than that of the evil laughter that plagued his dreams. Again he stroked her cheek and looked down into her deep, soulful eyes.  
  
"Marle… Why did you come here?" he asked as he still looked down at her. A slight frown formed upon her face as she stared straight back at him.  
  
"Why? Do you not want me here? She asked with a slightly puzzled and hurt expression on her face. Oh God, how it pained him to look at her like that. It hurt so much that he almost couldn't bear it for any longer than a few mere moments. She sighed and turned her frail face away from his glance. He could tell that she was slightly unnerved by being around him, but he did want her sitting next to him. He also wanted her to care about him and to care for him, but how could he say it? He always wanted to, but it was just something that refused to escape from his mouth.  
  
She slowly stood up and brushed herself off. A frown was still seen etched on her face, but they both tried to ignore it. "Well," she began slowly, "I guess I came here for nothing then. I'll leave you by yourself then. I hope you can settle everything out soon." She began to slowly walk away as her words lingered and finally seeped into his mind. It wasn't long before he ran up to her and ceased her arm, stopping her from moving any further.  
  
"Wait," he breathed suddenly. She looked at him with a slightly shocked expression on her face. She was searching his eyes for something that she didn't know of. They were glazed over with tears that hung on the bottom of his eyes, refusing to move from their position. A bunch of emotions were mixed in with the look fear, pain, hate, love, regret, sorrow, and awe. It was so confusing for her to look at him, seeing all these different emotions and feeling flowing freely from him with one simple look. Finally, her wrapped his arms around her quickly, bringing her close to him in a tight embrace. She tried to look at his face once more; his fiery red hair was covering his wet eyes.  
  
A single tear streamed down his cheek as he continued to hold her tightly. His body gave off a series of slow, unnerving trembles that shook her as much as it shook him. He fell to his knees, dragging her down wit him as he held her, trying his best not to cry. After a long painful silence, he spoke.  
  
"When I was asleep, I had the most horrible dreams." He voice was uneven and shaky. "They always had you in them, and something terrible always happened. Something… always happened to you, and eventually I couldn't bear it. I tried to wake up to warn you, but his hold was so strong. I could move, couldn't breathe, I just struggled in his grasp." The poor boys eyes were now freely flowing with horrified tears that left small puddles on the ground. "You have no idea of how afraid I was at the thought of losing you. It wounded me so deeply, and then he kept saying how he would come for me, and he would own my soul. Eventually he would start talking about how he would own you as well. I couldn't take it. I tried so hard to wake, and when I finally did I still heard him. It all seemed to real, way too real to be just a dream. It was then that I realized how much… How much I…" He paused and took a deep breath. Marle stared at him with watchful eyes, gently urging him on to say what he was going to say. He then looked deeply into her sparkling green eyes and saw what he was always looking for, love. Softly he whispered, "I then realized how much… I loved you…"  
  
She stopped breathing, stopped thinking, stopped any type of movement that somewhat involved her body. He was still staring at her, waiting for a response of some sort. Maybe a small spark of hope hidden deep within her eyes.  
  
When she finally breathed, it only came out no louder than a soft, peaceful sigh. Showing him a soft, loving smile, she hugged him tighter and rested her head against his chest listening to the rhythmic beat of his heart. She became lost in the moment when she closed her eyes, making all her fears and the dreams slowly melt away.  
  
Marle could have fallen asleep right then and there in his arms, wanting to feel nothing more than his warm embrace till the end of eternity. His slow breathing was like a song, lulling her to sleep and chasing away any fears that could have possibly taken her at that point of time.  
  
Crono smiled down at her. He loved looking at her just resting in her arms peacefully like she was now. It was one of the things that he enjoyed seeing the most. Yet, actions speak louder than words, and he couldn't just announce his love, he had to prove it. Gently, he placed two fingers under her chin and tilted her head to look up at him. He almost got lost in her green eyes that shined with a brightness that he couldn't explain. Placing a single hand on the side of her face, he softly descended his lips upon her while pulling her closer to him. Marle never fought back and just leaned into the embrace. Her arms glided arms his neck ad she held onto him tightly hoping that all her fears would eventually wash away.  
  
They stayed like that for what seemed like forever only wanting to live in that moment until the end of time…  
  
  
  
(A/N: This chapter I've had typed up for a long time, I just like to use it as a safty in case if I get wrister's block. At least this way I'll have soemthing to post. For those of you that have read it and reviewed, I'm very greatful, but I would still like to get more reviews. I worked really hard on this, and I'm trying even harder as I slowly go to revise the whole story chapter by chapter. I would also like people to flame me to hell about this story because I'm sure there sre people out there who 1) don't like my opinions on the forums or 2) they just don't like my writing. Also for any grammar problems, I will check up on that later. But until then, I'm getting dragged to a block party that I don't wish to go to, so I'll write more later. ja ne! ~*Lorz*~  



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